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History of Bonzai Network
Bonzai Network is an American cable and satellite television channel owned by the BritCan Communications Cable Entertainment Group subsidiary of BritCan Communications, which focuses on programs aimed at preteens and teenagers; it has since expanded to include two spin-off digital cable networks in the United States, and international channels in six continents. 1997-1999: Beginnings and Development In 1997, media conglomerate BritCan Communications began developing plans for a kids-centric channel based around action and adventure programs, following the success of its marquee channel BritCan Television. Originally titled Megaton.tv, the company had sent an application to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which was initially denied, but was allowed to keep the license. On April 6, 1999, a public consortium was formed consisting of BritCan and Canadian telecommunications company Shaw Communications (which was later spun-off as Corus Entertainment). Both companies announced on that very date that they were currently in the works of creating a new family-friendly television channel, in order to compete with other networks in the market such as Nickelodeon and Disney Channel.234 Under the arrangement, BritCan was responsible providing the television business background and the actual channel space, while having Corus provide the bulk of the programming content, including acquiring and producing series.45 Later at a June upfront, BritCan unveiled the channel to the public, now known as Bonzai, which would launch on May 27, 2000.6. The network would feature programming that would maintain a demographic of 2 to 12 year old children, but also had plans for younger-skewing content in the daytime hours and programming intended for adults overnight. Bonzai's launch was heavily promoted, airing multiple commercials for it on several cable channels and networks, some not owned by BritCan. 2000-2005: Launch and early years Bonzai Network officially signed on to the air on Saturday, May 27, 2000 at 6 a.m. Eastern Time, with the series premiere of its first original series Bunched Up! My Quintuplet Life. With an initial reach of 23 million subscribers across digital cable providers, Bonzai's initial schedule consisted primarily of international imports; most of which came from Nelvana, Corus' entertainment branch, as well as original productions.6 Most of these series was aimed towards the 2-11 demographic, but would also target family audiences with the expansion of Weekly Prime block, featuring syndicated comedies and dramas like Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Blossom, ''and ''Candid Camera.6 In June, Bonzai launched Bonzai+, a daytime block geared towards much younger audiences. The block drew its resources exclusively from the program library of Classic Media (now known as DreamWorks Classics), which included the Harvey Entertainment and Filmation catalogs. After major success, Bonzai+ later became a 24-hour standalone television network on October 1, 2001. After the launch of the channel, its philosophy was later changed to feature newer series from Nelvana. A problem the network faced in its early years was its low distribution. The channel, which was only seen in limited households and whose only big distributor at the was the Bethpage, New York-based cable provider Cablevision, was struggling in ratings. However, BritCan combated the issue by packaging deals; those who had access to BritCan channels were given low deals on getting the channel with no additional charge. By September 2002, Bonzai's distribution was up to 60.8 million households, and with the addition to digital satellite services DirecTV and Dish Network, the network soon switched to regular advertising. Originally, to fill in a half-hour block during its commercial-free-lineup, Bonzai aired aired advertisements and promotions as for shows airing on the network and on Bonzai+, advertising for DVD products of its programming, animated shorts under the Toon Bite ''banner, and occasional public service announcements from the Ad Council. In August 2004, BritCan Communications announced that there were talks in the company about Bonzai Network shutting down and being replaced by a new channel called the '''BritCan Family Network' (the same brand used for the children's distribution arm of BritCan Home Entertainment Distribution) in 2005. The new network planned to air 65% youth-based programming, 20% family-oriented programming, and 15% adult content. A meeting with the FCC discussing the channel was held on April 4, 2005. On November 14, 2006, the FCC announced that it had approved the application to run until June 4, 2012; BritCan Communications, however, failed to put the relaunch in place within the required 84-month period. 2006-2009: Beginning of resurgence Despite its low distribution, Bonzai's ratings were still declining. On April 3, 2006, Bonzai's on-air appearance was completely overhauled, albeit to further broadening and switching its focus towards preteen audiences. During its new schedule, the broadcast day began on 6 a.m. Eastern Time with preschool-oriented series in the BonBon block until 12 p.m., where animated and live-action series geared towards grade-school and preteen audiences aired for a majority of airtime until 9 p.m., when a new block, Bonzai Primetime, debuted and aired: a nod to the channel's Weekly Prime block in 2000. On January 2, 2007, BritCan Communications officially announced that it would increase its ownership in Bonzai Network to 60% by the end of 2008, and the acclaimed 10% stake from Corus was transferred on February 2, 2009. Following the purchase, BritCan was later acquired by Kandanal Entertainment, and was absorbed into its properties, in April of the same year. 2010-present: Current era On September 5, 2011, the long-standing block of primetime programming was finally branded as Bonzai@fterDark. During this period, the block was reformatted to be like similar late night blocks, such as Adult Swim, with a new emphasis on adult animation and black comedy. On August 28, 2014, Corus announced that it had formed a deal with Anglo-Irish studio Boulder Media and comic book subsidiary KaBOOM! Studios for new program supply agreements in the 2015-2016 season. This was followed by the introduction of an updated logo and a new imaging campaign on October 6, 2014, Surprisingly Entertaining, which was developed by the Los Angeles-based agency Oishii Creative. On that same date, the channel also began to refer itself as Bonzai Network. On September 1, 2016, Bonzai Network's on-air branding changed to reflect on the 27th anniversary of parent company BritCan—which was celebrated earlier in January—and the 17th anniversary of Corus Entertainment. The channel's on-air appearance and its website were dramatically changed as well, featuring a brand new graphics package created by Shilo Designs titled #ExpectTheFun. During this particular period, Bonzai Network began to air select programming geared towards families, as well as acquired from most major television networks; these shows included the Tom Bergeron-era of America's Funniest Home Videos, the American version of the game show Wipeout, the American and British version of Masterchef Junior, and the Hasbro game show Family Game Night. Due to copyright issues, most of these shows have been removed as of Spring 2017, however, Bonzai Network stated in a press release that it had gained the rights to air and produce more seasons for FGN. On May 29, 2017, Bonzai Network began using a different and new promotional campaign for its annual Summer Splash programming block, dubbed the "Super Summer Splash 2000!". The branded event was accompanied by world premiere of the newest original animated series Danny Dog, along with new returning seasons of The MEGA Bonzai Network Show, Snark's Wild Adventures, ''and Sir Chuckleton and Pals''. On June 26, 2017, the long-running Bonzai Playdate block was replaced by Rising Sun, to experiment with weekday morning programming. The block was later shelved and shortly replaced by The Nook in the fall. 2017-18: Return as 24/7 service Following the April announcement of budget cuts at BritCan (which resulted in sister channel Bonzai XTRM converting into an internet-only streaming service),alongside the fact that such timeslot was bringing in incredibly low ratings, it was announced on October 6, 2017 via a press release that the Bonzai@fterDark programming block would be shut down, and Bonzai Network expanding its hours to 24/7 on January 1, 2018. Hanshiro Aino, the president of Bonzai, later followed up on the news with BritCan news anchor Matt Lewis in an interview held on November 6. Aino stated that the decision was "although very challenging, in the end was the right thing to do." With the switch to 24/7 (which hasn't happened for the past 12 years), Bonzai will continue to broaden its schedule and reduce commercial breaks to allow more series. Popular network programming will also make up the overnight hours. Category:Bonzai Network Category:Histories